The Greatest SHOE Drive on Earth - A Guinness Record Attempt

 

www.GreatestShoeLNK.org

A fan whirring and darkness fills the room. It is 3am and my mind is racing with ideas of how to  increase awareness of the extreme global need for shoes. Thoughts of the children from Haiti who's feet are scarred or blistered as we washed them before they received new shoes. With nearly 300 million children who don't have the basic life necessity of shoes, so many lives are waiting to be changed and have hope through the simple gift of shoes. But HOW I thought tossing and turning in my blankets? Uuugghhh. Race? No, been done. Conference? Meh.  Finally my mind kicked in to its favorite mode, generating the most difficult idea possible that it would stretch not only your limits, but anyone involved and have a bigger impact than ever imagined. The need is great. We can be that for them

December of 2013 the idea was pitched to Soles4Souls and then over Christmas Break presented to the City of Lincoln.  From the minute we started talking about it, the City has such a positive response, it showed me how much they care about a citizen's idea.  We began to partner with the amazingly creative Minnow Project marketing firm to develop the full campaign.

Left to Right, Marty Hager Minnow Owner, Milo Mumguard Mayor's aide and Madison Hager Social Media expert

Maddy Hager and I after another lunch hour of planning right before we "kicked" off the shoe drive

May 10th we officially announced the effort at our Mayor's Press Conference and Mayor Chris Buetler realized our city has big shoes to fill :) Full press conference can be seen here, we are at around 12 minutes.

• http://lincoln.ne.gov/aspx/city/vod.aspx?vod=news%20conferences/news_streets.mov

It has been VERY exciting to see our community engage and with 2,000 down, we still have 15,000 to go with a little over two weeks to break the World Record. Possible? Anything is possible friends!?

There are 4 simple ways people can share their previously loved used for another:

1. Visit www.GreatestShoeLNK.org and find all of our convenient drop locations throughout Lincoln and Omaha to donate your shoes  
2.  If you do not live in Nebraska, you can mail your shoes to   Eco Stores, ATTN: GreatestShoeLNK, 530 P. Street, Lincoln, NE 
3.  May 12th - 16th Lincoln Waste and Recycling Haulers are doing a curbside pick-up. YES, you only have to walk a few feet from your front door to recycle your shoes and make an impact.
4. Spread the word through social media and with friends, co-workers, neighbors. Twitter @GreatestShoeLNK and facebook The Greatest SHOE Drive on Earth 

Business's if you get your employees engaged and take a picture by your logo donating your shoes, we will feature it on our web page and social media!  Yes, FREE PR with something everyone has at home, plus a changed life. Win. Win.

Upcoming event collection locations:

• Lincoln Marathon May 4th by finish line
• Haymarket Farmers Market May 10th
• May 17th. The BIG Celebration at Pinnacle Bank Arena Plaza from 9-1. Music, games, face painting and even nationally recognized baton twirler! 

Below are a few highlights of our citizens in Lincoln and actually across the US who are donating their shoes! #GiveShoesGiveLove

Channel 3 Action News in Omaha

Aspen Athletic Clubs

The Black Market

Omaha donor

Earth Day Donor

Edward Jones Investments

Broadcast House Radio Station

Lincoln donor

These will be coming from Kansas!

Lincoln donor

Lincoln Running Club

Lincoln Donor

OCR Runners are sending their shoes!

Open Harvest Grocery

Pattino Shoe Boutique

Even major stores are collecting! Scheels in Lincoln AND Omaha are hosting shoe box's

Local church's

Super C gas stations

Threads Footloose and Fancy

annnnnddd......Whole Foods Market

Nebraskan's and other fellow states, we can't do this without you! Our family just cleaned out our closets and we had over 100 pairs of shoes!!

LETS GO CHANGE THE LIVES OF PEOPLE ACROSS THE GLOBE....and in the mean time, add a World record on to it :) The Mayor even donated shoes from his household this morning!

We can do it friends, I know first hand the impact these shoes can make. You WILL be making a difference.

Thank you and it's closet cleaning time!
Warm Regards,
Maggi
Your Mrs. Great Plains International 2014

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT!

As of this afternoon at 4:30PM I will officially be competing in #AmericanNinjaWarrior Season 6 for Soles4Souls to help raise awareness of their efforts to wear out poverty in front of a #worldwide audience! 

I cannot sing or play piano, it's fairly debatable if I can dance;)...but I CAN RUN, jump and mentally defeat others. I have been entrusted with an ability that used to be taken for granted and it took me over 30 years to realize it can be used for good..and for others. This life is lived by Grace. Let's do this! #ANW6 #Soles4Souls #InternationalPageants

AHA Heart Walk 2014

   This Saturday is the annual Lincoln American Heart Association Heart Walk!
Below is our full information on the event and hope to see you there!

What can I expect at the Heart Walk?

Eat Street–
Free food from Russ’s Markets, Super Saver, Noodles & Co, Nebraska Pork Producers Association, Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club.

Kid Zone–
fun area for kids to play during the event festivities at the walk.

Survivor Tent–
All survivors get a red cap and a survivor pin for 2014

Still need to donate or needing to turn in Late Money Envelopes –Look for the Union Bank ‘Information and Collection’ tent and turn in any money envelopes here!

Survivor Recognition –
If you’re a heart or stroke disease survivor, please be near Pinewood Bowl stage about 9:45am. We’d like to recognize all of our Survivors on stage before the 10am walk!

Vendor Booths –
Visit all of our booths provided by our top supporters: Nelnet, Nebraska Heart Institute & Heart Hospital, Saint Elizabeth Regional Medical Center, Nebraska Pork Producers Association, Lancaster Rehabilitation Center, Walgreens, Madonna, 10/11 Cares, Union Bank & Trust Company, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, Runza, Molex, Speedway Motors, and MORE! 

 What time should I arrive?

Arrive at Pioneers Park around 8:00 to 8:30am. Tents will open at 8:00am, the main stage experience will start at 9:30am and the walk will begin promptly at 10:00am.

 What should I bring and wear?

Wear comfortable clothes and shoes that you can walk in as well as a jacket to keep you warm (and maybe dry). Right now, the forecast states lows in the 60s and highs in the 70s for the day!

 Event Schedule

8:00am – 10:00am – Heart Festival, Late Money Turn In, Visit Vendor Booths, Eat Street, Kids Zone
9:30am – 10:00am – Main Stage Experience, Survivor Recognition, Awards and Warm-Ups
10:00am – Heart Walk (2 Routes ~ 1.2 and 1.7 Mile)
11:00am – Noon – Heart Festival Continues with more free food! 

Hope to see you there,  I will be at the autograph and torch tent:)

Live Healthy!
Maggi
Your Mrs. Great Plains International 2014

Happy Easter!

Wishing you a wonderful day!

Dreaming...

Have you ever wanted an opportunity for someone to appear in your life and help you live your dreams day in and day out? Steve and Heidi Warren along with many others are doing that everyday in Omaha.

 Last week I was fortunate to be included in the Big D.R.E.A.M. weekend and we had a jam packed 3 days of events. This weekend was their major annual fundraiser, but the most impactful part of the weekend was hearing about the D.R.E.A.M. program and the 500 youth they serve everyday.

D.R.E.A.M. stands for Developing Relationships through Education Athletics and Mentoring.

 Seeing so many for student-athletes supporting the cause was exciting in itself, but my favorite night was bowling at Sempecks. Each person involved with D.R.E.A.M. as a "Celebrity Guest" bowler was paired with a lane. Throughout the night, we rotated lanes and were fortunate enough to interact with  the lane sponsors and hear about why they support D.R.E.A.M. and about their lives as well.

 Between gutter balls, strikes and spares, we all made many friends. The real win is what the program will be able to continue to do for the youth of Omaha and beyond. If you ever want to see someone with a passion to help others deep in their heart, you need to meet Steve Warren.

   As something that was a dream of his own to help others and give back to the community, it is now flourishing because of his families hard work, dedication and commitment. That Nebraska student-athlete mentality is living in him still.

Some of the pictures from the weekend below. To find out more about the D.R.E.A.M. program, visit http://joindream.org/

Night one kick-off Celebrity Guests group photo

Steve Warren, the founder of D.R.E.A.M.

A packed house. They sold out all of their lanes one month ahead of the event. Get your lanes for next year now :)

One of the Celebrity Guests, Jerrell Pippens celebrating with his lane

This particular lane became like a family to me, so welcoming and a wonderful heart for D.R.E.A.M.

NFL Tight End Niles Paul and I decided to trade roles. NFL here I come. He better start training in 5" heels!

A highlight of my night bowling, seeing a former teammates brother and he was my first lane!

  We all have dreams, and I once heard that a graveyard is the wealthiest place in the world because of so many unpursued dreams get laid to rest.

  What a wonderful program to have in our state to help the youth of Nebraska make their dreams a reality. I have had mentor's who gave me a chance, walked beside me through everything and pushed me beyond capabilities though possible to help shape what I am today. This is why programs like this are so important in our communities.

Who has helped you live your dream? Have you helped another with theirs?

Dream on friends...

Maggi :)
Your Mrs. Great Plains International 2014

Soles4Souls photoshoot fun

There are many legs to Soles4Souls so to speak and this last weekend I was able to take part in a photo shoot to celebrate one of the numerous corporate sponsors they have. With a reach in over 127 countries, Soles4Souls has been able to connect with many generous brands.

This post is dedicated to all of Soles4Souls corporate partners and all they do! THANK YOU!

http://soles4souls.org/sponsors

 

Here are a few of the pictures from the shoot, enjoy!

Soles4Souls has fabulous clothes of their own to help support their efforts to Wear Out Poverty. If comfy T-shirts are your thing, please check out their website to garner one of your own :)
http://soles4souls.org/give-shoes-give-love-unisex-t

Keep on the lookout in your inbox, a MAJOR, EPIC announcement will be made Thursday!

Have a great 48 hours until then,

Warmly,

Maggi Thorne

 Your Mrs. Great Plains International 2014